


Iron Princess

by daughterofthebillionaire



Series: Iron Princess [1]
Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Canon-Typical Violence, Iron Princess, Iron man compliant, OFC is canon character's daughter, Tony Stark has a daughter, Will have an eventual love interest in future stories in series, follows movie plot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-07
Updated: 2018-09-02
Packaged: 2019-05-03 18:03:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 15,033
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14574561
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/daughterofthebillionaire/pseuds/daughterofthebillionaire
Summary: Tony Stark goes missing. That's the origin of Iron Man. The world knows that. The world has always kept a watchful eye on Tony Stark. He was the son of Howard Stark, after all. The Stark men love the spotlight and media attention. Tony was always under the watchful eye of the media since he was young. But before the story him becoming Iron Man, the most interesting story he produced was one when right before his birthday, one of his one night stands went awry and left him an early birthday gift.The world has always kept a close watch of the Stark family. The world knew they loved the attention. Or at least seemed to.Leighton Stark didn't feel the same way, but kept let the world believe she didn't mind her privacy being breached every time she walked out the door.





	1. Prologue: Unknown

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nothing is what she felt.

Nothing. That’s what she feels. There is no pain registering. No sense of self preservation pushing its way through to the surface. Her nerves aren’t feeling the wind blowing against her skin and her eyes aren’t taking in the few strands of hair blowing in sight. There is nothing.

Absolutely nothing.

If there is a god or deity or any higher power that was supposed to be watching over her, he or she or it failed. If she had believed in anything, surely nothing would want its subjects or worshipers to suffer like this. Or how she was supposed to be suffering now. Soon it will seep in. But for now, there is still nothing.

In just a single moment, her entire life changed. It seems to be the only constant in her life in recent years. Change. Yet this change is something she is not prepared to handle. She is not trained to handle the drastic change life has now thrown at her. She doesn't want to think about life with these new circumstances. Circumstances that she didn’t choose. He didn’t choose. No one chose.

No one wants this and she doesn't think it’s truly been comprehended by anyone what has just occurred. It won’t take long for someone to crack first. Someone has to be the first to understand what just happened to them. It won’t be her. She knows it won’t.

How does she know?

Because she's still staring into the empty space in front of her. Her mind still sees the void as full when her eyes see nothing. There is no way that space is empty. There is something still there. _Someone_ still there.

But all she sees is nothing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was a short chapter. I do apologize. The chapters do get longer as the story progresses.
> 
> Leave a comment down below or go to my tumblr (same username as this site) and leave a message for me! Thank you!


	2. Chapter One: May 18, 2010

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The similarities and differences between the two.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is where Iron Man begins.
> 
> Each chapter title will be a date. Yes, the first chapter was called Unknown. It was planned that way.
> 
> Please enjoy!!

Delicate procedures, such as working on the intricate engine of an Audi R8, needed to be treated with care and caution. Especially when the procedure was replacing the original aluminum alloy engine with a rocket engine and the current pieces one was working on was the ignition charge. Usually that wouldn’t be such a problem, but when one’s helper was an over eager robot with a knack for pyrotechnics, it can be a big problem.

Needless to say when HELP-E reacted to an unexpected shout and nearly lit the tiny piece on fire with its built in flame charge, she thanked any deity that may exist for her quick reaction time. One of the brunette’s hands dropped the tool she was using and her fingers wrapped around the robot’s arm, aiming the flame away from her current project. When the flames had died down, she placed the ignition charge down on the work table and looked over the rim of her glasses towards the robot.

“Fire is not the answer to everything.” Leighton scolded. “Next time you do that, I’m deactivating your flame. Why did I even give that to you?” She mentally shook her head and tried to remember the reason she had built the robot with a flame charge.  _ Oh, that’s right _ , she thought. To prove to her father she could do it without burning herself, which she had proved quite easily. Though, she should’ve named it differently since the robot wasn’t amazing at helping as much as it was great at watching and setting things on fire.

Another shout made her realize that she had quickly forgotten that there had been a sound to make HELP-E react as such. Turning around, her mind registered that the shout had been her name both times and been from the woman her father hired to be his assistant and her glorified babysitter years ago.

The ginger haired woman was standing by the door, giving her a very far from amused frown that Leighton knew too well was not for her.

“I swear you are just like your father sometimes.”

The young Stark scrunched her nose at that as she stood up, wiping her hands off with a towel and dropping it on the chair she had been sitting in. “I take offense to that, you know.” Being compared to him was not always a great thing. People expected her to be just like him.

Pepper eased her frown into a half smile. “You know I didn’t mean it like that.” She took Leighton’s standing as an okay to enter. Leighton liked Pepper for that. She never entered the younger woman’s lab past the door without her consent or knowledge. Unless she had food and it had been days since she’d seen her eat. It was nice to have her own space outside of her bedroom that someone respected was hers. “I mean you work hard enough that you don’t realize when someone is calling you.”

Leighton nodded. Okay, that was a compliment. She did inherit her father’s work ethic. “So, what brings you here?” The only thing in Pepper’s hands were her tablet and stylus, hence she had assumed she wasn’t here to talk about Leighton’s lack of food intake the past few days. When did she last eat, anyway?

Leighton heard Pepper sigh as the brunette looked at the nearest computer screen for the time. “We need to leave for the awards ceremony in an hour. I was down here to ask you if you had seen your father, but you also need to prepare. I didn’t even bother to check your room for you before coming here.”

Damn.

She gave Pepper an exaggerated pained expression. “Must I show up? It’s not like I’m receiving the awar-”

“Yes, you must.” Pepper knew the young Stark too well for her to interrupt her sentence. “Your father is receiving the award and it shows the world how supportive you are as his daughter. Also, you are apart of the company, being his only child. You have to attend these events.” Leighton groaned as she continued. “I have a light dinner prepared for you to eat on the way, too. It has been nearly thirty hours since you last ate.”

Yeah, she knew her too well.

 

* * *

 

Leighton hated these things with a fiery burning passion that was unmatched by anything.

The cameras were constantly in her face, her father was nowhere to be seen, and she was getting questioned about his whereabouts and if she had any latest information to share about him; tech or woman wise. Uncle Obadiah was a saint to have in these situations. He was like her father and flourished in front of the cameras quite naturally. She, on the other hand, faked her confidence and smiles for the cameras.

He came over and wrapped his arm around her shoulder in a tight embrace, answering the questions for her and derailing any reporter who wanted to talk about anything except the latest new tech Stark Industries was in the process of creating. Eventually, he led Her inside to their table and away from all the cameras that weren’t allowed to follow them. Pulling out her chair for her to sit in, he pushed Leighton in and sat beside her.

“So, little one,” he smiled. “Show up alone?”

She nodded, a true smile on her face for him since they were alone at the table. “You know I did. There’s no telling where he is.”He shook his head, crossing his arms. “I’m just glad you aren’t like him. You’re being responsible and showing up to events you are required to attend.” He beamed at Leighton like a proud parent. He knew how uncomfortable she was in front of large crowds. Being a Stark was difficult for someone who didn’t like the media following her every move.

She was quite an odd Stark. Some of her attributes were definitely from her father. Tony Stark’s intelligence and work ethics for projects at home shined through his daughter. In her looks, she was practically just a female version of him; black hair, brown eyes, light tan skin. She was seven inches shorter than he was, but could easily be just as sharp when provoked, but that was very rare for her. But that’s where the similarities ended, practically.

Obadiah could easily spot the differences between the two, as could Pepper, Happy, and Rhodey.

Aside from her unease with the cameras, Leighton liked to be alone and felt no need to surround herself with anyone in a crowd. If she could have, she would happily put herself by a wall and ignore anyone who walked up to her. Yet she knew she couldn’t. Her responsibilities to the Stark name and company meant putting on a show that made her look like Tony’s mini-me. She would smile and laugh when appropriate and answer questions for the reporters, throw an attitude when the occasion would call for it, and even try to one up her father in front of the paparazzi. These things drained her, where it seemed natural for Tony, when he decided to be responsible and show up.

At home, she was quiet when outside of her lab or bedroom. The only noise came when she was conversing with someone or playing an instrument, whereas Tony needed to fill each room he walked in with noise just to announce his presence.

One would think these things would make the two annoyed with each other, but the ones who knew them well knew that the two were close. Not too close, though. Tony was in no way father of the year any year, constantly going off on trips while his daughter was a child and tending to forget she was waiting for him to return, even in recent times, it still happened. Leighton didn’t seem to mind. She didn’t know anything else.

Happy was there, at first not liking the new change from bodyguard to babysitter, but she quickly grew on him. Rhodey was there when his job allowed, knowing Tony had no intention of being a father at all in his life prior to Leighton’s birth. Eventually Pepper was hired in Leighton’s teen years, bringing the girl a much needed woman role model. Obadiah was there, more after the deaths of Howard and Maria Stark, instilling priorities into the young child.

So, when Obadiah had stated she wasn’t like him, Leighton’s smile was appreciative, but lessened in brightness. “Thank you, Uncle Obadiah.”

He nodded, turning his head toward the stage as the lights dimmed. “Let’s hope he makes an appearance.”

Leighton let out a soft chuckle and rolled her eyes, knowing Obadiah caught that in the peripherals of his sight. “There’s a bigger chance of me learning to fly than there is him showing up.”

Obadiah sighed, but couldn’t help but agree.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading this! Please leave comments below and tell me what you think! Or, if you'd like, you can head over to my tumblr (the same username as this one) and drop me a message there!


	3. Chapter Two: May 19-20, 2010

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The start of any other day.

The day had started off as any other day. Leighton had awoken in the early hours of the morning, so early the sun hadn’t lit the horizon, and went down to her lab. She barely registered that she hadn’t grabbed anything for food before she started working on her engine again. It wasn’t until Pepper walked down at six that the young Stark even realized that she must have not slept more than two hours before going down to her lab the night before.

“Honestly,” the ginger woman sighed, a sleepy smile on her face. “Do I need to post a guard outside your bedroom door to make sure you sleep?”

Leighton shrugged, setting her equipment to the side and following Pepper back up the stairs. “Maybe, but let’s be honest; I’d still sneak away somehow.”

A chuckle was shared between the two at that remark and they made breakfast together. Unlike her father, Leighton wasn’t a big fan of someone else cooking for her in her own home. At least, when she was reminded that food was a necessity to live. Someone occasionally brought food down to her, if they believed she may not move away from her project, mainly Rhodey or Happy. Obadiah would buy pizza or burgers and bring them to her while Pepper was the one who tried to get her out of the lab.

After a meal of bacon, eggs, toast, and fruit salad, Pepper mentioned something about picking up someone’s dry cleaning and finished her coffee before walking out of the dining room. Leighton left her dirty dishes in the sink, knowing a robot would eventually come around and clean them, understanding the meaning behind Pepper’s words.

Her father had brought home another woman, or two. Possibly three. There was that one time there was six women who Leighton watched walk out of the house in a single morning, but she’d rather not think about that.

Leighton, sometimes, found joy in escorting the random women out and giving them their goodbyes in her father’s stead. Sometimes.

She was quite used to her father’s very well known behavior. A new woman, or few, every once in a while. Multiple times as a curious child, she would walk in to Tony’s bedroom in search of him, only to find a naked woman in his bed and him in his lab or out of the house entirely. Eventually, she had learned to knock. As a child, it was easy to scare the women into never wanting to attempt for a second night with Tony. The words “Are you my new mommy?” would work miracles and send the women running out.

Nowadays, though, that didn’t work as well, seeing as the women now ranged from closer to her age all the way to her father’s age. Granted, there was only a twenty year difference between them. But it didn’t work when the women would look at her and try to befriend her, which is not what Leighton wanted at all. No, now all she had to do was set alarms around the mansion to trigger when she saw someone start to enter or touch something that they weren’t qualified to be in or near.

“Tony? Hey, Tony?”

Speaking of which, it was the perfect time to test out the systems again.

Leighton quickly and quietly walked out of the dining room and into a dark corner near the entrance of the hallway. She hid behind the wall near the paintings, facing the door, and watched a familiar blonde walk through. Leighton rolled her eyes and repressed a sigh when she saw the woman in nothing but her father’s shirt. Did these women not remember that Tony lived with his child? Albeit, she had just turned twenty, the point still stood that the mansion had more than one occupant in it.

She watched the woman reach out to touch the screen on the wall, smirking as the blonde jumped as J.A.R.V.I.S. spoke. “You are not authorized to access this area.”

“Geeze.” she reacted, walking backwards. Leighton shook her head and crossed her arms, smirk still present.

Leighton was about to speak when she heard Pepper. “That’s J.A.R.V.I.S.. He runs the house.” As the blonde turned, Leighton walked out and stood behind the woman, silently watching the interaction. Pepper met her eyes before quickly reverted back to the blonde. “I’ve got your clothes here and they’ve been dry cleaned and pressed. And there’s a car waiting for you outside to take you anywhere you’d like to go.” The rehearsed speech Leighton had heard far too many times from Pepper.

“You must be the famous Pepper Potts.” The blonde walked over to Pepper.

“Indeed, I am.” Leighton watched the scene with amusement.

“After all these years, Tony still has you picking up the dry cleaning?” The woman took her clothes from Pepper.

The amusement left Leighton’s face. Pepper was an amazing part of the life she lives. She had been there more often than her own father. The woman had some nerve to disrespect her in Leighton’s home.

Before Leighton could react, Pepper handled the blonde flawlessly. “I do anything and everything that Mr. Stark requires. Including, occasionally taking out the trash.” Pepper gestured towards the door behind Leighton as Leighton fought back the laugh that tried to come to the surface. “Would that be all?”

Leighton smiled and snapped her fingers, drawing the blonde’s attention to herself as well as opening the door behind her through her technology. When the blonde’s face was revealed to Leighton, she instantly recognized her and didn’t stop herself from rolling her eyes again. “You can leave now, Miss Everheart. There’s no need for you to change. My father owns about six of those shirts anyway. He won’t miss one.”

Before the reporter could reply, Leighton turned and walked down the hallway, heading back to her lab. She didn’t feel like continuing the game any longer. Pepper had already beaten the blonde and that, alone, was satisfactory enough for the young Stark.

 

* * *

 

Time had no concept in the lab. At least not to Leighton. It was another trait she shared with her father. Once a Stark’s head was in a project, it was amazing if either remembered to function like a normal human and remember to sleep or eat. There were multiple times that Obadiah, Pepper, Happy, and even Rhodey found one sleeping on a desk or floor in the labs.

Her father had left hours ago, perhaps even the previous day. Leighton hadn’t checked a clock in a while and her father doesn’t update her on his progress like a normal father would have. Something else she had gotten used to and saw no problem with.

She had finished her engine hours ago and was working on her piano she was building from scratch. Leighton had decided to start with the easiest parts, which were the light up keys she wanted, when J.A.R.V.I.S. turned off her music and spoke to her over the intercom.

“Miss, Miss Potts requests your presence in the living quarters.”

Shrugging to the best of her abilities without damaging the lights she was placing individually, Leighton responded, “Tell her she can come down here.”

His reply was instant. “She states it is of an urgent and immediate matter.”

Leighton stopped what she was doing and felt her stomach drop. Pepper never used J.A.R.V.I.S. to summon her. Ever. Everyone else did, but Pepper always made sure to be present in the room, not even telling the A.I. system to announce her presence to the younger woman, preferring to knock or wait to be noticed.

She put her tools down and didn’t respond to J.A.R.V.I.S. at all, just heading up to the living area, where a distressed Pepper, worried Obadiah, and beaten up Rhodey awaited her.

The day had started off as any other day.

And had ended as no other day had.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! Please comment below or go to my tumblr (of the same username as here) and leave me a message!!


	4. Chapter Three: July 20, 2010

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A quiet toll.

It had been two months and eleven days since Tony disappeared. Rhodey had immediately sent out a rescue team while Obadiah handled the press and company. Pepper did things around the mansion, but Leighton didn’t pay attention to anything. She barely noticed when Happy would show up with food or when Pepper would make sure she got to bed.

The young Stark through herself into her projects in her lab and if she wasn’t doing that, she would be found staring at a wall. J.A.R.V.I.S. would call one of the four to go into the lab after he recorded an hour or more of no movement in the office. The A.I. noticed that the robots in the lab would sometimes move more than the human. There were times that Leighton would be so out of it that she wouldn’t comprehend that Pepper would call Happy or Obadiah to carry her to her bedroom until she was alone in bed.

She never thought her father would go missing.

Sure, there were plenty of times that the two could go weeks without seeing each other. Between Tony’s trips and their separate labs, the two Starks didn’t know anything else aside from a simple acknowledgement from the other every so often. Leighton remembered that there was once a time that J.A.R.V.I.S. had Pepper informed that the two had seen each other once for a total of sixteen seconds in the timeframe of twenty-four days, while they were both in the house for the whole duration. Pepper had reprimanded the both of them and claimed they should spend more time together when they could.

Leighton didn’t think there would be a time where she wished she had taken more time with her father because she didn’t have the chance anymore. Healthwise, he was in great shape aside from the alcohol. He was still quite young. She didn’t have to worry about him dying, unless some freak accident occurred. She had a few major problems as a child, but had since gotten them taken care of or had them under control somehow. She doubted her father thought differently from her about time spent together. Neither of the Starks thought they had a time limit.

What hurt most was there was so much more she had to experience that she thought her father would be there for. While she rarely thought about it, Leighton knew that there were big life events she wanted her father to be a part of. Her wedding, her children. She knew she would take over the company one day and had hoped Tony would be there to give her the keys. But now, the chance of him coming home for those things were dwindling with each passing day. Even Rhodey was getting anxious.

Leighton sighed and shook herself out of her stupor. There were rare times in which she could get herself out of it without crying and she was thankful that was one of those times. She could feel Pepper’s eyes on her from behind. Leighton didn’t say anything, as was her way recently, and just kept working on her piano. The third piano she had created since Tony disappeared. She heard Pepper’s heels click on the floor, the ginger knowing she wasn’t going to get the usual invite. The sound of a styrofoam container softly squeaking against the table beside her.

“Happy picked up Thai for us.”

Leighton didn’t react outwardly to the words. The last time Pepper had tried to speak to her was two weeks after Tony’s disappearance. Leighton had still been trying to hold normal conversations, but broke down in screams and tears when Pepper mentioned how the media was taking the news of Tony. It had taken J.A.R.V.I.S. summoning Happy to hold Leighton while Pepper called Rhodey for help. While he couldn’t arrive, he had stated that he was still a part of the search team and how hopeful he was in finding him. Leighton knew, deep down, that Rhodey had only said that to calm her down.

After that, Pepper hadn’t spoken a word and neither had Leighton. Happy was careful with his subjects, but noticed Leighton had stopped speaking outright, while Pepper had only stopped speaking to Leighton, in an attempt to figure out what to talk to the younger woman about that wouldn’t set her off.

“You can eat down here, if you’d like, but Happy has an open seat right next to him on the couch, too, just for you.”

When Leighton didn’t respond, a gentle hand rubbed her shoulder before the telltale sign of heels on floor sounded away from her and out of the lab. Leighton stopped working when she heard the door shut completely. She turned her head ever so slightly to eye the food container. She didn’t even debate about where she would eat her food; The lab would be fine. She didn’t want to see anyone yet. Leighton had never been one for crowds, and though it was just the two others upstairs, she wanted to be alone still.

Putting the tools down, she wiped her hands off on a towel. She slowly opened the container and began to eat with the plastic utensils inside. After a few minutes, she looked around her lab, noticing all the differences since Tony’s disappearance. Her usually messy workspace would have been still been in pristine condition before. Now, it was clearly covered in dust and metal scraps. She used to clean after every time she finished in the lab, but she rarely left it so she didn’t see the point in cleaning. There was paint on the floor and broken light rements strewn wherever. Even though she thought it was dirty, Leighton couldn’t bring herself to clean it. She didn’t even want to leave it tonight. Or today. Whatever time it was.

Suddenly losing the small appetite she once had, the brunette pushed the barely touched food further on to the desk and stood up. She walked over to the makeshift bed in the corner she had made of random car seat fabrics and chair cushions, flopping down ungracefully. Her energy was nowhere to be found now, seemingly gone after the nonexistent interaction between her and Pepper. She didn’t want to sleep, but told herself that perhaps a few minutes would be fine. She would wake up and continue working then. J.A.R.V.I.S. would wake up her, right?

If not, the nightmares that plagued her dreamworld now would.


	5. Chapter Four: August 19, 2010

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some hope

There was very little that could brighten up Leighton’s mood, or at least bring her out of her dark pit. Rhodey had called early in the morning and said they had found a lead that could be a decent one. It was the first time she had been told any form of solid information, though she would admit that the information was built on a very shaky foundation. She would still take it.

It had since been fourteen hours since the call and Leighton was still in the living room, staring out of the windows, as Pepper alternated between pacing on the rug and sitting down on the couch. Happy had taken it upon himself to remind the women to eat and drink, occasionally asking the young Stark if she would like to sit or move away from the window, seeing as she had truly not moved her feet from the spot since receiving the call.

Leighton couldn’t remember the last time she had entered the living room and stayed, not just passed through between her lab and bedroom during the rare moments she decided to sleep in her bed the past few months. She wouldn’t go as far as thinking she had forgotten what the sky looked like or how the ocean’s waves moved in the breeze, but had the view always been so vast? She was sure it must have been, but that seemed foreign to her now. If her father made it home, Leighton silently promised herself to look at the horizon more. View life from more than her labs.

A small sigh escaped her lips, causing Pepper to stop her current pacing and Happy to look up from his seat on the couch. Pepper walked over to her, her heels clicking against the floor.

“What’s going on in your head?” she asked, placing a hand on Leigh’s shoulder.

It was a fair question, on her part. Leighton just didn't have an answer. Since Rhodey called that morning, Leighton's nerves were pretty much shot. Three months of believing her father had been killed or worse and now there was a slight hope of getting him back alive? She didn't want to keep hope in case it was taken away from her, but she couldn't help but to grasp on to the slightest bit of good news they've had.

Leighton barely tilted her head, the corners of her lips twisting up in the slightest of ways. “I should be asking you that, Pepper.” Her eyes met the other woman’s eyes in the window. “ You’re the one wearing a path into the rug.”

She could tell Pepper wanted to sigh at her, but that she was also a little picked up by Leigh’s not-so-obvious attempt at humor. “And you’re standing still instead of being a busybody as your usual self is.” came the serious reply, though the smile was on her face.

The young Stark held the gaze for a little while more before turning her attention back to the waters outside the window, now darkened with the night sky. When had the sun disappeared? Leighton shook her head slightly, turning to move towards the couch and Happy, causing Pepper’s hand to fall down to her side. Plopping herself down next to Happy with grace befitting a sober Stark, which she was surprised she had, she shrugged.

“I have no answer for you.”

It was a quiet and honest answer. Given the situation, it was expected, yet Happy and Pepper shared a look of surprise with each other. Rarely did either Stark admit they didn’t know or ‘had no answer’ for anyone. Both always claimed some form of answer, whether it be a lie or the truth, an act or not. If neither could think of something in public, one would save the other, the infamous Stark pride on the line. In private, they would remain quiet until a thought came to mind --Tony-- or just walk out of the room --Leighton-- until a solution was made or the entire subject forgotten.

Leighton knew she shouldn’t have said anything at that moment, but the circumstances were different than normal. She knew neither of the other adults would actually say something about her admission to her face, too worried she would crack and revert back to the mental place she set up the past three months.

* * *

Pepper had gone to sleep early in a guest bedroom and, after much reassurance from Leighton, Happy had retired for the night in another, so long as Leighton eventually got rest and didn’t return to her labs. It was a little before ten in the evening when the front door opened and Obadiah walked through.

At first, it seemed he was going to walk past her entirely, but the moment he gasped and clutched at his chest, Leighton knew he had realized she was on the couch.

“My god, child,” he chuckled. “You sure know how to give an old man a heart attack.” Leighton only gave him a small smile in return. He took that as a sign to continue speaking. “I’m glad to see you out of your lab. It’s been a while since I’ve seen that pretty face not so gloomy.” He continued his path into the kitchen, holding up a finger to assure her that he was returning.

Sure enough, after a few minutes of listening to glass clank and heavy footfalls hit the floorboard, Obadiah returned with two glasses and a bottle of white wine. He sat down on the chair cornered against the couch next to Leighton and poured wine into each glass, handing her one.

As she took it, she stated, “You do remember I’m only twenty?”

He chuckled again. “And your family has a history of drinking problems? Yes, I do remember. But I am a believer in starting out young and easy, not waiting until you can get it yourself with no control. That, my dear,” he clinked their glasses together, “is how people like your father and grandfather are made. I do not want the chain to continue with you.” He gestured around the room with his empty hand. “Here, in this house, we can watch you and help you. Make sure no bad decisions are made. You are already quite a brilliant woman and I believe that already makes you better than both the Stark men I knew. You won’t make a bad decision with alcoholism, but it’s always better to be safe.”

She couldn’t help but nod in agreement with her self-proclaimed uncle. The man had been partners with both her grandfather and father, so he would be the one to know them both and their struggle with alcohol. He knew how they both started and how she shouldn’t start like them. Leighton trusted the man and took a small sip of her drink. It didn’t taste too bad, quite sweet, truth be told.

Instead of commenting on the wine, Leighton looked at him and questioned, quietly, “Do you think they’ll find him?”

Obadiah was silent for a while and downed the rest of his wine before stating, “Yes.” He put a heavy hand on her knee and squeezed. “For your sanity and the hope of the company, I believe they’ll find him.”

Leighton nodded, taking another small sip, wanting to keep the small piece of hope she had held since that morning, when J.A.R.V.I.S. spoke through the intercom.

“Miss, there is a phone call coming through for you. Would you like me to patch it to your cell or the speakers? It’s Lieutenant Colonel Rhodes.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please leave comments or kudos! You can also go to my tumblr page under the same name as here and leave messages and read more about Leighton! Thank you!


	6. Chapter Five: August 20, 2010

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony's back!

The jet was due to land in a few minutes. The sky was clear and the sun was bright as it should be for the middle of the day.

Leighton and Pepper stood next to each other, both standing proper, hands held in front of them, while Happy stood slightly behind them, in front of the vehicle. Since arriving, neither of the ladies spoke, too nervous that it could be a dream or something and anything could ruin the moment, creating a crack in the hope they held on to. The only interaction between anyone was minutes after they had arrived and Happy had offered Leighton her sunglasses, which she had politely and silently refused. It had been eleven minutes since that.

Suddenly, the armed men behind the three of them stood more alert. The slight noise in the otherwise quiet base caused Leighton to look up towards the sky in front of them, her movement causing Pepper to look up, as well.

In the distance was a small dot. Leighton could feel her heart stop. It was the jet. That had to be it. In that jet held the most important man in her life. Hopefully, he was okay.

Rhodey hadn’t said much on the call last night, just that Tony had been located and retrieved. Other than alive, there was no further communication as to how her father was. It had been a short talk because he had to help load Tony on to the jet. She didn’t get to know how he had survived three months in the Afghanistan deserts by himself.

When the jet pulled in, the sound of the engines running was deafening, though Leighton didn’t seem to notice. Pepper didn’t, either. The fact that she was waiting for the ramp to come down and reveal her father, alive and breathing, overruled anything else she should have been noticing. She refused to move as the ramp did slowly open and lower to the ground.

There he was, briefly sitting in a wheelchair before Rhodey assisted him in standing. Leighton heard the small sniffle from Pepper, but made no effort to show she had heard the sound. She kept her eyes on her father, holding the tears of relief in, just as she could see her father doing the same. Their eyes met and he looked the same to her, yet so different.

His right arm was in a blue sling and he had multiple cuts across his face, but other than that, he seemed to look physically the same. His eyes, though, held a different story. Brown eyes that were once always full of mirth in some shape or form, were now deeper and somber.

He broke eye contact when Rhodey pointed out the step to watch out for. Leighton couldn’t help but smile slightly at his outright dismissal of the stretcher. He let go of Rhodey at that moment and walked up to the two women.

“Your eyes are red.” He noticed, speaking to Pepper. “Few tears for your long lost boss?”

Leighton took her eyes off her father and quickly glanced at Pepper as she replied, “Tears of joy. I hate job hunting.”

“Yeah? Vacation’s over.” he said, then turned his attention to his daughter as he began walking to the vehicle. “I’m sure you wouldn’t have needed to hunt. This one here could bring you as much suffering as I could.”

Leighton rolled her eyes and followed him, sensing Pepper moving behind her. “I believe that’s your job.” She nodded a thanks to him as he held the door open while Happy got Pepper’s door. He slid in after her.

“Apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, darling.” Leighton couldn’t stop the huff and a second eye roll at his comeback while he shut the door.

Happy entered the car and asked, “Where to, sir?”

“To the hospital, please--”

“No.”

“Tony, you--”

“No.”

“Tony, you have to g--”

“I don’t have to do anything. I’ve been in captivity for three months. There are two things I want to do. I want an American cheeseburger, and the other--”

“That is out of--”

“Is not what you think. Pepper, I want you to call for a press conference now.”

“A press conference? What on earth for?”

“Hogan, drive. Cheeseburger first.”

Leighton, throughout the entire conversation that was going on around her, didn’t say a word. She made eye contact with Happy through the mirror and they shared the same expression that said it all for the both of them: _That didn’t take long for them to be at it again_.

Happy started to drive and before he could ask where to again, Leighton spoke up. “I’m craving some Burger King.” She proceeded to pull out her phone and text Obadiah, while Pepper handled the conference.

* * *

As soon as they pulled up, Obadiah was there to greet them, along with a whole lot of news reporters. He opened the door, pulling Tony into a hug almost immediately. “Look at this! We were going to meet you at the hospital.”

The two of them began to walk away towards the entrance of the building as Pepper and Leighton got out, a bag in each of their hands. Leighton put on her press face the best she could. She hadn’t faced anyone since a day after his disappearance. The press had practically knocking on their door and she refused to leave the mansion since that day. It had been a while since she had to fake a smile for the cameras.

As they followed the two, Leighton could hear bits of the conversation of cheeseburgers and Tony needing it. That caused Leighton to chuckle with Pepper. Happy gently took the bag from Leighton, handing her a cheeseburger out of it as they walked, and she nodded in thanks, knowing it was for the cameras.

Inside the building, the hall was full even though the press conference was called together on such short notice. Leighton would have been impressed had this not been something she was used to. The press was always quick when it came to the Starks and their activities. Tony’s reappearance after going missing was sure to make every news station send out a reporter as quickly as possible.

She could feel Pepper stop following them at the entrance, but Leighton continued forward with Tony and Obadiah, knowing she wasn’t allowed to be away from the attention of the press. Leighton watched Obadiah take to the podium and eyed her father who sat at the base of it. She was unsure as to where to go until her father tugged at her sleeve, silently telling her to sit next to him.

“Let’s get this started,” she heard her uncle trail off.

Tony then stated, “Hey, would it be alright if everyone sat down?” She watched him fish through his pocket, pulling out a burger. “Why don’t you just sit down?” He gestured to the ground. “That way you can see me, and I can… A little less formal and…” He took a bite out of the burger and glanced at Leighton. She took it as him waiting for her to do the same, so she did. She unwrapped her burger and took a bite. She was liking the start of this conference better than any other she attended.

Leighton watched the sea of reporters all look questionably and amusingly at each other as they all sat down at Tony’s request. Obadiah joined the two of them on the floor on Tony’s other side. Tony looked at him and quietly said, “Good to see you.” Leighton heard Obadiah return the statement. “I never got to say goodbye to Dad.” He turned his attention to the reporters. “I never got to say goodbye to my father.” He placed his burger on the ground.

After a few moments of silence from him, Tony spoke again. “There’s questions I would have asked him.” He looked over to Leighton. “I would have asked him how he could run a company and a child at the same time and make it look so easy.” Leighton could feel the corners of her lips twitch up, knowing her father was actually confessing something deeper to her. He turned back to the reporters. “I would have asked him how he felt about what this company did. If he was conflicted, if he ever had doubts. Or maybe he was every inch the man we all remember from the newsreels.”

He went silent again, thinking about his next words. “I saw young Americans killed by the very weapons I created to defend them and protect them. And I saw that I had become part of a system that is comfortable with zero accountability.”

Leighton put her burger in her lap as she watched the reporters start to raise their hands and call her for her father. “Mr. Stark!”

“Hey, Ben,” her father nodded to one in front.

“What happened over there?”

Her father stood and walked around her, to the podium, as he answered. “I had my eyes opened. I came to realize that I have more to offer this world than just making things that blow up. And that is why, effective immediately, I am shutting down the weapons manufacturing division of Stark International until such a time as I can decide what the future of the company will be. What direction it should take, one that I’m comfortable with and is consistent with the highest good for this country, as well.”

The reporters and Obadiah all stood up while he spoke, Leighton remained sitting. At this point, she picked up her burger and took another bite. It was a shock to her, yes, that her father was shutting down their biggest division, but she would take it in stride.

After all, making a commotion is what Starks do best and what better what to make a commotion than making a huge decision within an hour of arriving home after being held captive for three months?

Now that she thought about it, this isn’t just what they do best, it’s _exactly_ what Starks do.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! Please leave a comment down below and some kudos! Also, you can visit my tumblr at the same username as here and leave me messages and explore Leighton further!


	7. Chapter Seven: August 20, 2010 - Part Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Later that night

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize for the delay and the shortness of this chapter. Deadpool 2 premiered last night and it was great!!

Hours later found Leighton in the mansion, wandering the kitchen. They had made a pit stop at the arc reactor warehouse so Tony and Obadiah could speak after the press conference. Leighton wasn’t exactly sure what they spoke about, but she could hazard a safe guess it was about the miniature version of the reactor attached to her father’s chest he had shown her and Pepper on the way to the building.

Since the press conference, Leighton hadn’t eaten anything and the sun had set long ago. While she had been up for the better part of forty hours, she wasn’t tired yet, just hungry and still a little lost. She had so much work to do with her projects that she had put off or continuously ran into dead ends the past few months due to her lack of focus, but she didn’t want to start working on something only to fall asleep at the bench. She usually didn’t worry about the time, but a part of her was afraid that if she fell asleep, she’d wake up and Tony would no longer be there.

Sighing, Leighton opened the fridge to see some old takeout leftovers, picking up a carton. As she shut the door to the microwave, a pair of footsteps sounded towards the kitchen. She hit a few buttons and waited to hear the steps stop before turning around and seeing the other person.

Tony stood there, looking at her with his arms crossed over his chest. “You know,” he started, “that stuff isn’t good for you.”

Leighton rolled her eyes, a playful smile on her lips as she turned back towards the microwave. “I don’t care. It’s food.”

“Heat me up some.” came the response. She reached back into the fridge and pulled out a second container, giving her father the first one she had heated up.

While waiting for the second container, Leighton took in the quiet of the room. It was odd to be in a room with her father so quiet that wasn’t the lab. She realized that this was the first time they had been alone since his return. The quiet wasn’t awkward, but she could sense that her father didn’t know how to fill it and it was bugging him.

After the microwave went off and she had gotten situated at the table, Leighton whispered, “What happened?”

Tony put down his fork, keeping his head down and staring at his food. He looked so exhausted to her, as if the world had finally taken a toll on him. He used to be so put together and he did it so well for the cameras today that for a moment, she could have forgotten he was held captured for three months and not on a long vacation.

It took him a few moments before he answered. “So much.” Those two words held everything she needed to hear without him needing to elaborate. He was shaken up and Leighton could easily tell that it was going to take a long time for him to get over what happened over there, if he ever did. Leighton wouldn’t blame him if he couldn’t forget.

She nodded slowly in response, not asking for any more information. Forgetting about the food, Leighton rested her head on her father’s shoulder, wrapping her arms around his chest the best she could from the angle she was sitting.

When Tony wrapped his arms around her, she felt before she heard him start crying. He wasn’t loud in his crying. Not that she had anything to compare it to. Her grandparents had died when she was nearly two and she had heard that he went into full destruction mode, screaming and drinking while he cried. Rhodey had taken her for months, Tony seemingly forgetting he had an infant to take care of in the midst of his self destructive, mourning habits.

This time, he held her and his chest hiccupped as his breathing became slightly abnormal. He was trying to hold it in, but lost his control as soon as he wrapped his arms around her. She couldn’t feel the tears wetting her hair, but she knew they were and she didn’t care. Leighton tightened her arms around him in response.

It was their first interaction that she would remember that didn’t hold any humor.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! Please leave comments and kudos! If you want, you can go to the tumblr page under the same name as the author name here and read more about Leighton and/or stay updated!!


	8. Chapter Seven: August 21, 2010

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A little change of heart

The next morning found both of the Starks in Tony’s lab. After the dining room incident, both went to their respective rooms and slept. Not for long, but better than either of them had in months. They decided to go into Tony’s lab to start their day, which was how they found themselves in the situation they were in.

“No.”

“Seriously--”

“No.”

“--you’re going to let--”

“No.”

“--your old man die--”

“No.”

“-because you won’t--”

“No.”

“--change the reactor?”

Leighton had helped Tony design a better miniature arc reactor in the few hours they had been down there. With better resources and technology at his disposal, Tony was quite happy with the results and just how quickly they were able to create one in comparison to his last experience. It was made out of better materials and the edges were smoother.

Leighton had a perfectionist side that Tony knew was there, but hardly saw himself. It was quite an experience to watch his daughter work and bat his hands away each time he had tried to take it away from her before she was completed with the design. She wanted to make sure it was completely smooth, unlike the jagged one that was currently attached to him.

Now, though, came the problem. He hadn’t been awake when the first one was placed in him and Tony needed someone else to change it.

Leighton was outright refusing.

She gave a humorless laugh. “I did not get enough sleep to be attaching something to a living human. Especially when his life depends on it.”

Tony huffed out his response. “Well, my life does currently depend on it and you’re the only one here. This one is a ticking bomb, practically.”

“Nope.”

He threw his hands up, slightly aggravated. “It’s quick!” He sat down on the chair and leaned back. “Just pull it out and put the new one in. You know what to do. You’re the only one qualified to do this.”

Leighton shrugged, turning her chair and rolling far away from him, towards the table she had claimed as her own. “Then, I guess you’re dying.” It hadn’t taken long for them to be able to joke again.

Tony nearly pouted. “I liked it better when you were quiet.” He could practically hear her eyes roll in turn. “Fine. Who else could do this?”

She pointed up to the ceiling before turning back to her small project she had just started. “There’s a certain ginger upstairs, probably about to charge down here and want to know if we’ve eaten anything today.”

This time it was Leighton who could practically hear her father’s eyes roll. “Seriously, kid, this is why I should have let Rhodey adopt you.”

Leighton chuckled, but said nothing, causing Tony to finally cave and summon Pepper. To say Pepper was shocked to see the man shirtless in a scenario that doesn’t involve him in a bed and running late to a meeting would be an understatement. The younger Stark couldn’t help the smile on her face.

“Let’s see them. Show me your hands.” was the first thing her father said when Pepper entered the lab. When she didn’t immediately respond, he repeated, “Let’s see them.” Pepper barely had her hands raised when Leighton heard his response. “Oh, wow. They are small. Very petite. I just need your help for a sec.”

“Oh, my God.” Pepper gasped, causing Leighton to swallow her laughter and pretend to focus on her project. “Is that the thing that’s keeping you alive?”

Leighton’s shrug went unnoticed as her father replied, “It was. It is now an antique.” She didn’t need to turn to face them to hear him lift up the new arc reactor. “This is what will be keeping me alive for the foreseeable future. I’m swapping it for an upgraded unit, and I just ran into a little speed bump.”

“Speed bump?” Pepper interrupted. “What does that mean?”

“It’s nothing. It’s just a little snag.”

Leighton couldn’t stop the snort that came out of her, but tried to cover it up with a cough when she realized Pepper had briefly turned her attention to her before Tony took it back. “There’s an exposed wire under this device. And it’s contacting the socket wall and causing a little bit of short. It’s fine.”

That was an understatement, if not a bold faced lie. But Leighton kept her mouth shut. Though, she couldn’t help but to turn around and watch her father pull out the old reactor. She was quite intrigued and slightly impressed that he could do that without cringing.

“What do you want me to do?” Pepper took the old reactor that Tony handed her.

Tony gestured nonchalantly to the table Leighton was sitting at. “Put that on the table over there. That is irrelevant.” As Pepper placed it by Leighton, he continued, “I want you to reach in, and you’re just gonna gently lift the wire out.”

“Is it safe?”

Not completely, Leighton wanted to say.

“Yeah, it should be fine. It’s like Operation. You just don’t let it touch the socket wall or it goes beep.” Tony downplayed the situation like the pro he was and Leighton sighed.

“What do you mean, “Operation”?”

That… That was an unexpected question that caused Leighton to give Pepper a look of sheer surprise when the older woman turned to face her shortly. “Wow.” was all the young Stark could say to that.

Tony kept playing it cool. “It’s just a game, nevermind. Just gently lift the wire. Okay? Great.”

Pepper was starting to put her hand into the socket wall and suddenly pulled it out. “You know, I don’t think I’m qualified to do this.”

Calmly, Tony shook his head gently. “No, you’re fine. You’re the most capable, qualified, trustworthy person I’ve met. You’re gonna do fine.”

Pepper shook her head and turned to Leighton. “Aren’t you more qualified?”

Leighton shook her head in return, but before she could verbally respond, her father beat her to it. “I’ve already tried her. Is it too much of a problem to ask? ‘Cause I’m--”

Pepper immediately turned back to Tony. “Okay, okay.”

“--I really need your help here.”

Pepper slowly put her hand into the socket wall, this time pushing forward in the task. Leigh could hear the squish of her hand meeting the discharge and suppressed her shudder. “Oh, there’s pus!”

Leighton cut her off with, “It’s not pus. It’s an inorganic discharge from the device.”

“Not from my body.” Tony added.

“It smells!” Pepper nearly squeaked, cringing terribly. Leighton couldn’t have been happier to be further away than those two.

“Yeah, it does.” Leighton was surprised at how calm her father was during this. Then again, it was probably to keep Pepper as calm as possible.

“The copper wire. The copper wire, you got it?”

“Okay, I got it! I got it!”

“Okay, you got it? Now don’t let it touch the si--SIDES--” Tony suddenly got much louder and Pepper gasped her apologies, causing Leighton to jump slightly when she heard the beeping of the machine added to the mix. The wire must have touched the sides.

“We should play Operation after this.”

“Hush it.” Tony turned his attention back to Pepper quickly to stop her from panicking anymore. “--sides on the way out. That’s what I was trying to tell you before. Okay, now make sure you that when you pull it out, you don’t--”

Pepper proceeded to pull out the magnet before her father could warn her not to. It was like a trainwreck to Leighton. She should turn away and stop watching, but she couldn’t. She should also step in and help coach Pepper, but she couldn’t help but to watch from the sidelines. He wouldn’t die if she stayed quiet, she was sure of it.

“There’s a magnet at the end of it! That was it. You just pulled it out.”

Leighton was doing her best to not laugh and keep a straight face.

“Oh, God!” Pepper exclaimed.

“Okay, I was not expecting-- Don’t put it back in! Don’t put it back in!” Tony was trying his best to still remain as still as possible and calm for Pepper.

She turned around and placed the wire and magnet by Leighton. Scrunching her nose, Leighton could finally smell the scent they were speaking of. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing, I’m just going into cardiac arrest ‘cause you yanked it out like a trout.” was Tony’s sarcastic response. Leighton was sure he’d be fine still if he was cracking that out.

“What? You said it was safe!”

“We gotta hurry. Take this. Take this.” He handed her the new arc reactor. “You gotta switch it out really quick.”

Pepper took the reactor and looked at Tony, seriously. “Tony.”

“What?”

“It’s going to be okay. Okay? I’m gonna make this okay.” Leighton was so close to losing it and laughing. It sounded like Pepper was trying to convince herself more than Tony.

“Let’s hope.” It seemed as though Tony had the same thought, based on his tone. “Okay, you’re gonna attach that to the base plate. Make sure you--” Her father suddenly exclaimed as Pepper did exactly as he instructed. “Was that so hard? That was fun, right?” He adjusted the reactor.

“Are you okay?” Pepper breathlessly asked.

“Yeah,” Tony responded. “Yeah, I feel great.” He laughed wholeheartedly.

Leighton could hear the relief in Pepper’s voice. “Don’t you ever, ever, ever, ever ask me to do anything like that ever again.”

“I don’t have anyone but you.”

She smiled at that sentence, not bothering to correct him. Leighton knew what he meant when he told Pepper that. To both of them, they only had Pepper on a daily basis. Tony was more difficult to get along with than Leighton was, but Leighton didn’t like getting to know many people. Rhodey and Obadiah were constantly busy with their careers and Happy had a life of his own to live when he wasn’t with them. Pepper was the only one who was there every day and would be there at the drop of a dime whenever one would call. Leighton was happy her father had someone like that.

As they discussed what to do with the old reactor, Leighton turned herself away from them to look at her project. It was true, her father wasn’t called nostalgic at all. She was pretty sure the only things from her childhood he kept were photos, and even then, they were in some room, forgotten somewhere. Starks weren’t known for that.

When Pepper left, Leighton watched her father watch her walk away and couldn’t help the smile on her face. She was caught, apparently.

“What’s with that look?”

Leighton shook her head. “Not a thing.”

Tony turned back to his desk, muttering something along the lines of seeing if Rhodey still wanted to adopt her. Leighton’s smile grew more fondly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! As always, you can head over to the tumblr page for Marvel and Iron Princess updates! It's under the same name as this!


	9. Chapter Eight: October 2, 2010

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A little more than a month later.

They fell into a routine, not too unlike the one they had previous to Tony’s captivity. Up early, lab, wait for Pepper or Happy to remind them of food, more lab, more food, more lab, bed late, repeat next day, with the occasional visit from Rhodey or Tony going to visit Rhodey himself.

The only difference was that Leighton and Tony could often be found in the same lab now, at least before dinner. Leighton had taken over a few tables of Tony’s lab in the mornings, Tony took a few in her lab in the afternoon, then after dinner was when they could be found in their respective labs.

They didn’t talk much, but they didn’t need to. The two Starks were quite good at communicating without words or sounds, much to the constant dismay of Pepper and amusement of Happy.

Pepper had been accustomed to Leighton’s quiet personality with her outlandish Stark-ness only appearing in its true form every so often. Now, though, the trademarked Stark personality was coming out more fluidly than it did in the past. Pepper secretly found it endearing, if at times annoying, not that she would openly admit to it to the two Starks.

For weeks it went on like this, numerous projects were made by the two of them. Multiple projects were worked on at once by either of them. Pepper, Happy, and even Rhodey were constantly surprised by how much the two could do at once without confusing one thing for another. It was just a trait that none of them had been used to seeing put to use aside from out in front of the cameras, which the two were avoiding per Obadiah’s request. Though, some days, Obadiah requested Tony’s presence in meetings and Tony would refuse.

It was on a quiet night that Tony had ended his time in her lab early that Leighton had been requested upstairs by Pepper, stating Obadiah had returned from his meeting in New York.

“Must’ve been bad if he came home so quickly.” Leighton remarked.

Pepper sighed as she looked around the younger Stark’s lab. “I didn’t believe it would go well with your father’s announcement.”

Leighton shrugged. “That was, what, five or six weeks ago? Surely they’re over it by now.” She put down the new piano keys she had been working on and stood up. “It hasn’t affected us to where we’d notice anything and the big wigs are only slightly less rich than us.” She rolled her eyes.

Pepper walked alongside her up the stairs. She decided to change the subject. “Why wasn’t he in there with you?”

Leighton looked up at Pepper before turning her attention back in front of her. “Said something about needing to work on his project. Walked out after.” It wasn’t a big deal. It was well past dinner time, so Leighton didn’t mind the privacy.

She heard Pepper sigh. “You keep going upstairs. I’ll get your father.” She went to turn down another connecting stairwell before immediately turning back, a finger pointing at her. It was then Leighton noticed the packages and coffee Pepper had been balancing in her other hand. “Do _not_ go back downstairs. Seriously.”

Leighton held her hands up in mock surrender and quietly continued her way up the stairs.

Once she reached the top, she heard the familiar sound of the piano being played. Walking over to the black, pristine grand piano, Leighton sat down besides Obadiah, who continued to play, but smiled down at her.

“I hear you have a few new projects you’re working on.” he stated.

Leighton nodded, her fingers going to the treble keys as Obadiah made his way down to the bass section. “Lit keys.” she answered briefly.

He returned her nod, listening to her join his song. “Glow in the dark piano, then?”

Leighton let out a soft chuckle. “They’ll only light up once they’re struck.”

“Ah.” He gasped, impressed. “I can’t wait to see it finished. What will the body be made of?”

Leighton shrugged. “Haven’t decided yet. Needs to be something that can withstand the constant heat source from the lights and cords; Something that won’t burn if an accident occurs.”

Obadiah moved his mouth as though to respond, but he was interrupted.

“How’d it go? It went that bad, huh?”

Leighton hadn’t even noticed when Pepper returned and sat down on the couch, when her father spoke up and rounded the corner.

“Just because I brought pizza back from New York doesn’t mean it went bad.” was the response from Obadiah.

“Sure doesn’t.” Tony had taken a seat next to Pepper on the couch and went for the pizza. “Oh, boy.”

Obadiah stopped playing, but patted his hand on Leighton’s shoulder to signal for her to continue, which she did. Music was her forte, right after mechanics. He stood up and grabbed his drink. “It would have gone better if you were there.”

Tony shook his head after taking a bite of pizza. “You told me to stay low. That’s what I’ve been doing. I lay low, and you take care of all…”

Obadiah walked towards Tony. “Hey, come on. The public. The press. This was a board of directors meeting.”

“This was a board of directors meeting?” Leighton, even over the sound of the piano, could hear the sarcasm drip from Tony.

Obadiah sat down. “The board is claiming you have posttraumatic stress. They’re filling an injunction.”

“A what?”

“They want to lock you out.”

“Why, ‘cause the stocks dipped forty points? We knew it was gonna happen.”

“Fifty-six and a half.” Pepper interjected.

Tony turned to Pepper. “It doesn’t matter. We have controlling interest in the company.”

Obadiah shook his head. “Tony, the board has rights, too. They’re making a case that you and your new direction isn’t in the company’s best interest.”

“I’m being responsible! That’s a new direction for me, for the company.” Leighton couldn’t help but agree, but still cringed at his slip up and how he tried to cover it. Apparently, so did Pepper. “I mean, me on the company’s behalf being responsible for the way that… This is great.” He stood up abruptly and started walking away with the pizza. “I’ll be in the shop.”

“Oh, come on, Tony. Tony.” Obadiah put his drink down and stood up, walking up to Tony. “Hey, hey. Hey, Tony. Listen.” He gently pushed Tony around to face him. “I’m trying to turn this thing around, but you gotta give me something. Something to pitch to them.” He pointed to the reactor glowing on the shirt Tony wore. “Let me have the engineers analyze that. You know, draw up some specs.”

Tony immediately refused, talking over Obadiah. “No, no. Absolutely not. This one stays with me.” He began to walk away. “That’s it, Obie. Forget it.”

Obadiah took the pizza box away from him as Tony walked. “Alright, well, this stays with me, then.” Leighton rolled her eyes for the umpteenth time that night at the sight of them behaving like children. He opened the box up. “Go on, you can have a piece. Take two.”

“Thank you.” Tony walked up and took another slice before turning back to head for the stairs again.

“You mind if I come down and see what you’re doing?”

“Good night, Obie.” And with that, Tony was back downstairs.

Obadiah sighed and turned back to Leighton, who was blatantly staring at the scene that had unfolded in front of her. “Were you not looking at the keys this entire time?”

Leighton shook her head no slowly, still playing. “It’s not like they move.”

He chuckled, putting the box down on the table, and sat beside her again. “What should we play next?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you again! Tumblr page is under the same name and is fully operational finally!!


	10. Chapter Nine: October 15, 2010

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Leighton meets a fan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry about the delay!! Life...
> 
> Also, Solo Movie was great.

The firefighter family fundraiser convention was that evening and Leighton couldn’t help but not want to go. It had been a few weeks since she had been forced to go out in public and face the paparazzi. While she was used to the normal questioning and knew her father or Obadiah would take most of the brunt, it would be the first time since her father’s announcement she would be seen, meaning there would be new questions with no real way of deflecting without Obadiah. She hadn’t gone to any meetings, Obadiah stating that the board was still fine without her, so she wasn’t truly in the loop of what was happening to answer questions properly.

She still had a few hours before she would need to get ready and dressed, so Leighton used them in her lab. Instead of starting a new instrument or vehicle project or continuing the ones she had, she was going through the files in the system on her computers. She, like her father, recorded every piece of information she ever used in a project with J.A.R.V.I.S. and filed them according to the project and date. Leighton had thought she would know everything in the files, as she checked them quite often, but that day she had come across a new file folder. When she clicked on it, however, it didn’t open.

“Jarvis,” she picked up her mug and drank her tea. “Open the file.”

“You are not authorized, Miss,” came the unexpected response.

Leighton scoffed. “Of course, I am. Open it.”

“I apologize, Miss, but you are not allowed in that file.”

Leighton lowered her mug to her lap and raised her head a little, eyes still on the screen. “Why not?”

“It is for Mister Stark only.”

Months ago, Leighton would’ve shrugged and been fine with that; Whatever project he was working on was probably a weapon he didn’t want anyone to steal from. Now, though, her curiosity was peaked. They no longer made weapons, so what could he be hiding?

“Miss, I do not recommend whatever you are--”

Leighton put her mug down and immediately started to open the codes to the files, J.A.R.V.I.S. stopping his sentence on his own.

And if the AI could sigh, Leighton was one hundred percent sure he would have sighed the longest and most exasperated sigh known to the world.

“Shall I help you, Miss?” he resigned.

Leighton made a noncommittal grunt as she replied, “What security measures did you put on it?”

“The standard.”

“I’m good.”

Growing up with technology, quite literally being raised by it at times, came with perks Leighton wouldn’t take for granted. After all, not many people got to have an AI butler teaching them history, mathematics, and languages their entire childhood. Hacking came quite naturally to her. She had first started when she was ten. Attempting to get her father’s attention whilst he was in a meeting, Leighton had managed to hack into J.A.R.V.I.S. and bug him to only call Tony by Darth Vadar until Tony gave in and built her a lab of her very own. After making sure the child wouldn’t be able to hack into the poor AI again, of course.

Once the file folder opened, the younger Stark watched all of the files open across her three screens in awe. Her curiosity knew no bounds as she continued to briefly study the files as they opened.

“Don’t tell Dad.”

“I have already ensured his ignorance.”

* * *

Hours passed quickly and soon Leighton found herself turning off all of her screens at the sound of Pepper’s heels coming down the stairs. She spun in her chair as the door opened and smiled at Pepper.

Pepper came to slow halt at the smile and returned one of her own. “Are those _curlers_ in your hair?”

Leighton patted the side of her head, having forgotten that she had, indeed, started the curling process of her hair that morning. Shrugging, she replied, “They’re called rollers and yes.” She stood up. “Have to look good for tonight since it’s my first time back out, right?”

Before she could roll her eyes, Pepper laughed and waved her over to the door. “I’m sure you could show up in pyjamas and half your head shaved and no one would question you.”

Leighton walked over and passed Pepper, assuming she would follow and catch up. “I would hate having half my head shaved.”

* * *

“You look very vintage today, Miss Stark.”

The sudden voice shook Leighton out of her own head and caused her to locate the source. Her eyes found Happy’s face looking at her through the rearview mirror. She sighed, she must have started to zone out and panic for Happy to speak.

Nodding, she smiled weakly. “Hopefully not too vintage. I would hate to look old.”

Happy turned in his seat and shook his head. “No. A beautiful vintage, like Lana Turner or Judy Garland. Even Lauren Bacall.”

Leighton would have been impressed by the ex wrestler’s knowledge of classic actresses if she hadn’t known him the way she did. “Thanks, Happy.” She knew he was trying to calm her nerves before she was let loose to the paparazzi.

Happy nodded. “I’m going to get out now and open your door. I’ll be around the block if you need me.”

As he got out, Leighton took the moment to appreciate his kindness and how lucky she was to have these people in her life. Between Happy and Pepper, who must have exited the vehicle a while ago as the ginger was not in view of the windows, Leighton had a great support system for her unusual fear of the public eye. Well, unusual for a Stark, at least.

The door opened and her façade immediately took over. Her smile was proud and eyes shone in the flashing lights of the cameras. Thoroughly well hidden was the fear and pounding heart. She paused a few times and posed for photos in a practiced manner before walking inside the building.

Once inside, the dim lights helped her sneak her way over to the drinks and grab a water. Grabbing anything else would have caused all eyes to be on her, being as she was just twenty and her family had a history with alcohol that could not be described in any positive way.

She had only taken one sip when she heard a voice close address her.

“Hello, Miss Stark.”

Turning to her left, Leighton eyed the unfamiliar man. He had a high hairline and an expression that looked as though he was not meaning to look stern, but it was just natural. His eyes were kind, though, and quite excited, much to Leighton’s dismay. That look was only given to her by newly interned reporters sent by their colleagues as a test.

“Yes?” she asked, wanting to get this interaction over with as quickly as possible.

The man held out his hand, shaking, but in eagerness. “My name is Agent Phil Coulson and I am honored to meet you.”

Taking his hand, Leighton remained silent, unsure as to where this was going now. Typically reporters didn’t shake hands with the Starks or come off this enthusiastic.

The man named Phil continued. “I am intrigued as to how you managed to stay so young, though. Your adventures with Captain America were my bedtime stories growing up. It was quite odd to find out that in 1990, Howard’s son had a daughter named Leighton. I thought, at first, it was a homage to his father’s aunt, but then I did some research only to find out Howard never had a sister. I was quite intrigued in finding that bit out, yet I grew up with photos of you, Captain America, and the Howling Commandos on my walls.” He had a smile that would rival that of cat that finally ate a canary. “And here you are, not looking any older than you did in those photos.”

Leighton was lost. So incredibly lost and it was angering her.

What had this man been drinking and how long? He needed to stop and get away from her.

“Excuse me?” was all she could come up with as a response.

“How did you do it?” He crossed his arms, still looking as thrilled as he was the moment he started talking. “I’d love to take you back to my office and chat, if you’d not like to talk here.”

Leighton felt a single eyebrow raise as she slowly shook her head. “I don’t understand what you’re talking about.” And that admittance pissed her off. In public, she hated having too much attention on her and right now was a reason why. She didn’t want to be caught off guard, yet here she was, completely and utterly stuck.

Coulson reached into his pocket and pulled out a card, handing it to Leighton, who, unlike her father, accepted it. She didn’t have the aversion to being handed things. “I work for the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division. I’d love to talk about whatever you did to live back then and right now. I’m a huge fan.”

Leighton looked down at the card in her hand that had the entire name written on it in tiny letters. This man was crazy, but she vaguely remembered hearing about this division growing up. “You couldn’t just put S.H.I.E.L.D. on the card? Obviously, that’s what someone was going for.” She decided that the only way to get away from this man was to respond.

He laughed, crossing his arms again. “It would seem so. Look, it doesn’t have to be tonight. I’m just really interested in how you did it.”

She shook her head, looking up at him, trying not to break her façade anymore than she already had. “I grew up on stories of Captain America, too. My dad hates the guy, but I find him interesting. My aunt would tell me war stories of him.”

Coulson’s eyebrows went up. “You have an aunt? That’s not common knowledge.”

She sighed, smiling and trying not to laugh. “No, not exactly. My dad is an only child. It’s just the people who are close to my dad or my grandpa, like Obadiah. I call him Uncle Obadiah,” she offered as an example.

Coulson slowly nodded in understanding, still delighted to be talking to her. “I have read that.”

“Yeah. So, when I say my aunt, I really mean--”

“There you are!”

Leighton couldn’t be sure if she had ever been more relieved to hear Pepper’s voice.

Looking over at Pepper, Leighton said to Coulson, “I’ll see if I have time,” before walking away to Pepper.

She knew she wasn’t going to actually do that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please leave comments and kudos. If you wish, you can head over to the tumblr page which gives you updates on the story and interesting tidbits about the characters! It's under the same name as my author name here. Thank you!!


	11. Chapter Ten: October 16-17, 2010

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The next couple days bring quite the storm.

There had been a hole in the roof and the grand piano had been destroyed when Leighton returned home. She had almost thought there had been a break in, but J.A.R.V.I.S. had quickly informed her that, no, there hadn’t been a break in, only a malfunction that was being fixed. A malfunction that Leighton certainly got out of the AI before the night was through. A night that Leighton had decided to end early at the party soon after Pepper rescued her, only to come home to a hole in the roof.

At that point, she had shook her head and told herself she would deal with it in the morning.

Only to find her father’s lab empty that morning and shattered glass everywhere.

Leighton sighed. “Let me guess,” she addressed the omnipresent AI. “Another ‘malfunction’?”

The British voice replied, “Not exactly, Miss.”

“Where is my father?” she asked, turning around and heading back up the stairs to the section where they parted towards her lab.

“Gulmira, I do believe.”

That brought Leighton to a pause. Quizzically, she said, “Afghanistan? Why would he go back?”

“I couldn’t tell you why, Miss. Perhaps the news could help. I’ll play the clip he was watching.”

 

* * *

 

The next day when Rhodey was on the television announcing a training exercise gone wrong, Leighton was watching it from her bed. She couldn’t tell if she was shocked or not. It was right near Gulmira, far too convenient for it to have been what the colonel was claiming it to be. When her father came back almost as soon as the report was over, she decided she was shocked.

Pepper had just gotten into the building when J.A.R.V.I.S. announced that Tony had returned. Leighton nearly ran into her on the way down the stairs, both sharing a look that was pure exasperation.

While Pepper took in the shattered glass, this being the first time she saw it, Leighton just couldn’t help but to look at her father’s struggle with getting the suit off. She followed Pepper and sighed heavily at their interaction. Bullet holes had definitely riddled the suit, which meant that her earlier assumptions of Rhodey lying on national news was fact.

Leighton decided that the two older adults needed to talk and she wanted to have no part of it, so she slowly turned around and walked away as quietly as one could on shattered glass. She proceeded to eat breakfast and go work in her own lab for the day.  
The next time she came out was for lunch the next day. She hadn’t meant to work through the whole day and night without a break, but her new project demanded round-the-clock attention and maintenance currently. She was reaching the top of the stairs when she noticed Pepper walking for the door.

“Hey, Pepper.” she greeted.

The slight jump the ginger tried to hide from the younger Stark made the brunette very suspicious. “Hi, Leighton. I’m just going to go for a quick meeting at Stark Industries. It was with that guy from that one government place and I’m just going to go see him. Bye.” She spewed out quickly and practically ran out the front door before Leighton could question her actions.

Leighton quietly replied, though she was alone, “The weird guy who implied I lived during Captain America’s time? Why, Pepper?” She walked to the kitchen. “Oh, just to tell him how crazy he is and how there’s no way you could have been there since you were born in 1990.” she replied to herself, shaking her head.

Pulling out food for a sandwich, Leighton mumbled, “What is going on with her?”

 

* * *

 

It was around ten at night the next time Leighton had a thought about leaving the lab. This time, though, was not for food, but for her bed. She could feel the tiredness slipping in and she figured since she didn’t spend the last night sleeping on anything, she should be kind to her body, at least, and sleep in her bed that night.

“Hey, J.A.R.V.I.S.,” she called out, “Can you place in a delivery for pizza? I’m thinking pepperoni and some cherry Coke would be nice before bed.” She chuckled to herself.

She was about to call out again when the power went out to her miniature torch. She clicked it a few times before placing it down, frustrated. She was almost done and wanted to finish before sleep claimed her. Suddenly, the whole room went dark.

“What the hell?” She stood up, feeling for her desks and tables as she moved towards the lit staircase outside the glass walls. Slowly, though, the light was dimming as the bullet proof steel doors made their appearance with no orders to do so on Leighton’s part.

Leighton tried to run for the glass doors before the steel engulfed them fully, but failed and hit the metal hard. She started beating the walls.

“Hey!” she screamed. “Hey! What’s going on?!”

No reply.

“J.A.R.V.I.S.?!” A pause. “Dad?!” Another pause. “Pepper?!”

No one responded, leaving Leighton alone and in the dark.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize for the wait!!! I have this story finished and the rest of the chapters will be out soon. I also apologize for the shortness of this chapter. I was going to combine it with the next one, but I figured it would be better to have them in two places to leave with a cliffhanger. <3
> 
> Please leave kudos and comments here or at the tumblr page, where I will be active again. lol


	12. Chapter Eleven: October 17-18, 2010

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The ending to Iron Man and the beginning of the heroes.

There was no way out.

Chairs had been thrown against the steel doors. Pipes been broken against it. Even the few crowbars she had had been damaged from the doors not budging an inch.

Leighton had been successfully trapped in her own lab and she highly doubted it was a joke by anyone. In fact, she knew no one would do this as a trick. J.A.R.V.I.S. should have opened the place up by now. Something must be seriously wrong if J.A.R.V.I.S. locked her up and went radio silent for this long.

She couldn’t even tell how long it had been. All the power had been stripped at the beginning, turning off every single computer in the room, even her watch had malfunctioned in the outage somehow.

Someone had to have hacked into them, but who? Tony and Leighton were both incredibly smart. They created their own systems of security that the military’s brightest couldn’t hack, and many had tried. J.A.R.V.I.S. would black anyone who could get through their defenses and warn them about the cyber attack.

No, something had definitely gone wrong and there was no way for Leighton to know what. She couldn’t do anything, except wait and patience was not a known Stark trait, especially in stressful situations such as this.

When Leighton began to think she would need to try again to break out again, or at least make some noise to see if anyone noticed, the lights came back on with a vigor. She cringed at the sudden change and stood up against the concrete wall she had been sitting against. She blocked her eyes with a hand as the steel doors slowly retreated to their normal, hidden positions.

“I do apologize, Miss.” came the AI’s voice.

“J.A.R.V.I.S.!” she exclaimed, relieved. “What happened?”

If AIs could sigh and be disgruntled, she was sure J.A.R.V.I.S. would be so at that very moment. “It would seem as though Mister Stane had--”

“Uncle Obadiah?”

“Yes, Miss. Obadiah Stane executed the security measures and changed my programming slightly. He modified it so I would be unable to communicate with you inside your laboratory while the protocols were up.”

Leighton was confused. “Why would Uncle Obadiah do--”

“Because, kid,” a voice came from the stairwell. Leighton quickly walked over to the opened door to see her father walking down the steps, injured beyond belief. “He tricked us. He isn’t family now. Wasn’t ever, I believe.”

“Dad…” Leighton took in his appearance. He looked like he got into a fight with a train and lost.

Before she could ask anything, he cringed in pain at the final step, gasping for a breath. “Long story short, Stane tried to kill me. Would have killed you, too, if I didn’t stop him.”

Leighton was just more confused. It must have shown on her face, because Tony just smiled at her and wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

“I’ll explain better when I’m not in so much pain. Now, help your old man up the stairs.”

 

* * *

 

The following day found the Starks and Pepper doing another press conference. Rhodey was on the television explaining what had happened by lying and covering up. No one needed to know that Obadiah Stane, the man who helped found Stark Industries, the late Howard Stark’s long term friend and business partner, just tried to murder the Stark name. It wouldn’t be good for media or reputation.

She watched Rhodey on the television in the room as Pepper and Tony talked while Pepper patched him up enough for the conference. Iron Man was on the front page of the every paper and was on the news reports earlier in the morning. Leighton didn’t need to be paying attention to her father as he explained why it was inaccurate. Nor did she need to hear the story the agent had come up with for Tony to recite. Leighton wanted to laugh a bit. She highly doubted her father would go through with their story and just create one of his own.

As the agent was leaving, Pepper strode up to him to thank him for his work. He interrupted her and stated, “Just call us,” he caught Leighton’s eyes as she turned away from the television to stand for their entrance. “S.H.I.E.L.D.” With that, he smiled at her and left.

Leighton almost felt bad for not trying to meet with the guy. A small remark that was meant to be sarcastic that night and he took it seriously. Not that she wasn’t grateful; Now she wouldn’t have to state the long name whenever he was bound to show back up.

The young Stark couldn’t help but stare at the train wreck of flirting her father was doing with Pepper before they walked out. Even she had to admit that he lost some of his game when it came to the ginger. She cringed a little as she watched him walk away and stood beside Pepper.

“You know, he’s trying.” was all Leighton could say about the situation.

Pepper let out a long, drawn out sigh. “I know.”

The two headed towards the conference together, Pepper’s arm around Leighton’s shoulders, while Leighton’s arm was hung around Pepper’s waist. The two shared a small laugh at the expense of the billionaire ahead of them. Once they reached the doors, they let go of each other and smiled. Leighton would be proud if her father ever dated the woman standing beside her. They deserved each other.

She entered the room while Pepper went back to the room and walked up to the side of the podium, allowing Rhodey to introduce Tony. Leighton stayed to the side and behind him, opposite of her uncle, and listened to her father’s carefully written speech.

And just as she predicted in her head, Leighton watched her father stray from the cards wildly. But when he went way off book and told the truth about being Iron Man, well…

Leighton couldn’t help but to break her professional composure and laugh, happily.

No more hiding. _Finally_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, there is a short epilogue planned for this one, just like how the Marvel films have extra scenes in the ending credits. There will be one after this. <3
> 
> Sorry for the lackluster ending there, but Obadiah was Tony's villain to fight. I felt like it was cheating to have Leighton come out and fight at the end. That was my original, though, a few years ago when I made the first idea of this.


	13. Epilogue: October 19, 2010

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fury meets Leighton

It was actually pretty easy to get the hang of once one got used to the idea. It was exhilarating to feel this kind of freedom. To not be kept down by the rules of society.

It was also really late at night and Leighton shouldn’t have been doing it so late and with no sleep for two days, but hey, at least her stomach was full. She had remembered to eat. That was called progress. She was quite proud of herself.

She was about to power her lab down when she heard a voice yell at her, completely missing the doors opening.

“WHAT IS GOING ON HERE?!”

Oh.

That was the angry voice of her father.

Quickly spinning herself to face him and his guest who she had no idea who it was, she said, “This is…” Leighton looked from Tony’s face to the floor and back to Tony before she shrugged, giving up on coming up with any sort of lie. “...Exactly what you think it is.”

He stared up at her, incredulously, as the man beside him laughed.

Leighton slowly lowered herself to the ground and pointed at the unknown man, hoping to take the attention off of her, but knowing there was little chance of that happening. “Who’s Eyepatch?”

Tony just gawped like a fish out of water as he turned from her to the man and back to her again. “Furious, or something like that--”

“Fury.”

“--But, don’t change the subject!” Her father didn’t bother to listen to the man correcting him. “What in the hell do you think you’re doing?”

Leighton took off her mask and she awkwardly smiled at him, rubbing the back of her head with a hand. She didn’t have much of an explanation, but luckily Fury had a few words.

“Well, looks like Iron Man has an Iron Princess to look after.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Now, I know that the timeline here is fuzzy. In the movie, Tony comes back from being captured in early May of 2008. It's plastered on the television when Pepper is watching it. I moved it to 2010, because it works with the timeline of the series better by a little bit. I tried to fix where some of the inaccuracies played out in future films. Such as when Tony tells Strange in Infinity Wars (SPOILERS IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN INFINITY WAR YET) that Thanos has been in his head for six years. Meaning, if Tony's trip to space the first time (Avengers) was when Thanos first went into his head (when he saw the death of everything up there and then couldn't sleep because of his PTSD afterwards), then Avengers happened in 2012. I know that there's a possibility that it could have happened when he picked up the scepter in Age of Ultron, but that doesn't add up to Infinity War happening in 2018, since Age of Ultron supposedly takes place in 2014 or 2015.
> 
> So, to help everything add up a little better, I just moved the dates of the first few movies instead of pushing Infinity War to 2020. Sorry for the confusion.
> 
> I'm also going by a timeline I found a couple years ago. It made things nice. It hasn't been updated since The Winter Soldier, I don't believe (or maybe it has), but I love it. I'll have to find it again. I saved it somewhere. lol
> 
> But this is the end of the first Iron Man. Iron Man 2 will be about the same length. Avengers is when the stories start to get a little longer, but Captain America The Winter Soldier is where, I believe, it begins to gain a lot of length.
> 
> Thank you and keep an eye out for HIDDEN SECRETS which is part two of Leighton's story!


End file.
